Reviews of Casa Pura Vida Surf Hostel - Tamarindo Costa Rica 3 stars
Calle Langosta, 200 Meters North from the Beach, next to ZEN Cafee Restaurant, 50309 Tamarindo, Costa Rica
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Reviewed: 17 August 2025 · Stayed in May 2025
Verified reviewGreat location, like two blocks from the beach. Super clean kitchen and nice pool and common areas
Most hostels in CR let me check in earlier if they had rooms available, but here they were quite strict with the check in time being at 3pm. Also, you can only stay until a certain time on the day of your check out (I think like 2/3pm?), which is weird for a hostel. They'll also only hold your bags in storage until that time. Also, the room was really overridden by big ants which came out at night, and they only turn on the AC in the evening until early morning, so no way to hang out in the room during the day
Thanks for your review and for pointing out the location, kitchen, and common areas! Regarding what you mentioned: check-in and check-out times are fixed so our cleaning team can leave everything spotless for the next guests. Luggage storage is also until a certain hour since space is limited. About the ants, in the tropics they may show up sometimes, but our staff is always around to help if it happens. And about the AC: by default it runs only at night, but if during the day you’d like to rest or hang out in a cool room, just ask at reception and we’ll gladly turn it on for you. Hope you’ll be back soon to enjoy Tamarindo and the good vibes of the house!
Thanks for your review and for pointing out the location, kitchen, and common areas! Regarding what you mentioned: check-in and check-out times are fixed so our cleaning team can leave everything spotless for the next guests. Luggage storag… Show more
Reviewed: 16 July 2025 · Stayed in July 2025
Verified reviewJust fantastic. Best hostel we have ever been to. If you are looking to meet cool people and stay in a wonderful place so close to the beach I highly highly recommend you stay here. The staff are fantastic and the kitchen plus facilities and pool are sooooo good!
Wow! Thank you so much for those kind words! It makes us so happy to know that you consider Casa Pura Vida the best hostel you’ve ever stayed. So glad you met awesome people, enjoyed our close-to-the-beach location, and loved the kitchen, pool, and all our facilities. The staff is thrilled to have hosted you and we hope to see you again soon to keep sharing good vibes. Pura vida always!
Wow! Thank you so much for those kind words! It makes us so happy to know that you consider Casa Pura Vida the best hostel you’ve ever stayed. So glad you met awesome people, enjoyed our close-to-the-beach location, and loved the kitchen, … Show more
Reviewed: 25 June 2025 · Stayed in June 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 22 May 2025 · Stayed in May 2025
Verified reviewThe private room was nice, blackout curtains, mini fridge, & AC. The pool & kitchen were also nice & clean.
This is a PARTY hostel - not a surf hostel. Extremely loud music & partying until late at night. The staff were some of the loudest ones partying/screaming which seemed a little unprofessional. We weren’t the only ones complaining about the noise, other guests were also complaining. Most surfers wake up early to hit the morning tide so a little crappy not being able to sleep. Also, they have a huge dug out pit in the back that is an open air compost. I respect that they are trying to create organic soil but the SMELL is HORRIBLE throughout the whole property. It smells like rotting fruit and meat. They should purchase a plastic compost container. We didn’t stay in the dorm room but it didn’t look great, no curtains on the bunk beds/ dorm room beds… very exposed and no privacy.
Hi Clayton, thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We’re truly sorry that the vibe wasn’t what you expected. Occasionally, things can get livelier, but it’s not a daily occurrence. We take our quiet hours seriously and always make sure things wind down by 11 p.m., even on more active nights. We’re especially sorry if any noise from the staff affected your stay — we’ve already discussed it internally to ensure it doesn’t happen again. We also appreciate your note about the compost area and are actively working on better ways to manage the smell. Thanks again for also pointing out the things you did enjoy — we hope to welcome you again with a better experience.
Hi Clayton, thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We’re truly sorry that the vibe wasn’t what you expected. Occasionally, things can get livelier, but it’s not a daily occurrence. We take our quiet hours seriously and alwa… Show more
Reviewed: 16 May 2025 · Stayed in May 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 15 May 2025 · Stayed in May 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 11 May 2025 · Stayed in May 2025
Verified reviewThe staff was amazing and very helpful! Highly recommended this place. It’s very close to the beach and quiet at night. HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS PLACE!
Nothing, honestly. If you are looking for a good hostel, this is one of them.
Thank you, Blake! We’re so happy to hear you had such a great experience. It was a pleasure having you with us — hope to see you again. Pura vida!
Reviewed: 5 May 2025 · Stayed in May 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 3 May 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 27 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 22 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewGreat location, just a stroll from the beach. Staff were very friendly and very helpful, much appreciated. Got a private room and it was very comfortable with Great ac. Saw monkeys, squirrels, iguanas and a racoon there, love all the nature.
Honesty, nothing negative to say, other than when there was no water for a short time, but I believe that was a city problem, not a hostel problem.
Thanks, Nathan! We’re happy you enjoyed the location, your private room, and the beautiful nature around us 🐒🦎🌴. Sorry about the water outage — as you mentioned, it was a city issue, but we’re always on it as quickly as possible. See you next time!
Thanks, Nathan! We’re happy you enjoyed the location, your private room, and the beautiful nature around us 🐒🦎🌴. Sorry about the water outage — as you mentioned, it was a city issue, but we’re always on it as quickly as possible. See you ne… Show more
Reviewed: 14 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewThis was a boys trip with my 14yr son. Not normally a "hostel" family, our idea of roughing it is normally a Courtyard Marriott. Saw a review the day before we left that we pretty bad. I was braced for the worst. Total opposite of the review i read. The staff as super freindly. Our room was simple but perfect. AC, two comfy beds, clean, mini-fridge that actually kept things cold! The bathroom was clean as was everything else. No kidding, i think 75% of the time I was about the place, there was a staff member cleaning, sweeping, wiping down stuff. It was a short walk to the beach and town, maybe 200 meters to each. Very convenient. They have a great quite time policy so no loud late nights. Really awesome place. If you go be sure to get breakfast at Waffle Monkey! Right on the beach, perfect start to the morning.
Can't complain about much at all. I would literally have to almost make something up to say what I didn't like. Maybe the pillows could be fluffier?
Hiii Thank you! We're so happy you and your son had a great experience — especially since it was your first hostel stay! 😊 We loved hosting you and really appreciate your kind words about the staff and cleanliness. We'll definitely take note of the pillow suggestion. Hope to see you again someday!
Hiii Thank you! We're so happy you and your son had a great experience — especially since it was your first hostel stay! 😊 We loved hosting you and really appreciate your kind words about the staff and cleanliness. We'll definitely … Show more
Reviewed: 13 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewPool, common area, equipped kitchen and friendly staff. Close to the beach and the main streets. Everything is within walking distance. They also have a compost pile for biogradable waste, for those who care about these things.
Check-out time is 10am, which is a bit early compared to other places. There's also lots of ants in the bathrooms by the dorm rooms, but as long as you follow the guidelines of no food in the rooms it should be okay.
Thank you, Anja! So glad you enjoyed the kitchen, location, and vibe. 🌿 We appreciate that you noticed our compost — sustainability matters to us! We’ll look into the ant issue near the dorm bathrooms. Thanks for your feedback and hope to see you again!
Thank you, Anja! So glad you enjoyed the kitchen, location, and vibe. 🌿 We appreciate that you noticed our compost — sustainability matters to us! We’ll look into the ant issue near the dorm bathrooms. Thanks for your feedback and hope to s… Show more
Reviewed: 5 April 2025 · Stayed in April 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 22 March 2025 · Stayed in March 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 14 March 2025 · Stayed in March 2025
Verified reviewLove the communal spaces, large kitchen and AC in our room.
The shower doesn’t have that much pressure and shared bathrooms are always just a bit dirty. The double bed in the private rooms is very small.
Hi Saskia, Thank you for your feedback! We're happy to hear you enjoyed the common areas, the spacious kitchen, and the comfort of having AC in your room. We appreciate your comments about the shower pressure and cleanliness of the shared bathrooms—we’ll keep working to improve in those areas. As for the bed size, we’ll take that into account for future improvements. We hope to welcome you back soon! Best,
Hi Saskia, Thank you for your feedback! We're happy to hear you enjoyed the common areas, the spacious kitchen, and the comfort of having AC in your room. We appreciate your comments about the shower pressure and cleanliness of the sha… Show more
Reviewed: 10 March 2025 · Stayed in March 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 18 February 2025 · Stayed in February 2025
Verified reviewReviewed: 18 February 2025 · Stayed in February 2025
Verified reviewthe pool, chilling area and kitchen were great! and they even had things like oil in the kitchen for free which is super helpful, and an ice machine 😍 there is staff/security there constantly even at night/early in the morning the vibe is just really great which i think comes from the attitude of the staff - they’re the best!
the bunk beds don’t have curtains on so you don’t get any privacy for the time you are staying there, which gets a bit much with a long stay or if you’d like to nap in the day the toilet/bathroom is outside the room, so you have to remember to take your key when you need to go which is sometimes hard in the middle of the night when you need to use the toilet when you’re half asleep the chairs by the pool are not good - there are only 8 or 9 for the entire hostel (some sun loungers and some regular chairs) and they are in bad condition with broken sections
Thank you, Lucy! 😊 We're so happy you loved the vibe and our staff! About the bathrooms, we totally understand that it can take a little getting used to, but having them outside the dorms helps keep the rooms more comfortable and cleaner for everyone. Almost all hostels follow this setup, and we do our best to keep them well-maintained and easily accessible. As for the pool chairs, great news—we've already added more so there’s plenty of space to relax! 🌞 And regarding the bunk beds, privacy curtains are not something we currently offer, but we appreciate the suggestion. Safe travels, and we’d love to welcome you back anytime! ✨🌴
Thank you, Lucy! 😊 We're so happy you loved the vibe and our staff! About the bathrooms, we totally understand that it can take a little getting used to, but having them outside the dorms helps keep the rooms more comfortable and clean… Show more
Reviewed: 4 February 2025 · Stayed in January 2025
Verified reviewBeautiful location and saw a lot of wildlife on the property - monkeys in the trees nearby, friendly raccoons, lots of beautiful birds and a few iguanas roaming the grounds.
The bunk bed mattresses were not that comfortable.
Hello,Thank you very much for taking the time to share your review. We are delighted that you enjoyed our location and the company of our local wildlife during your stay. We regret that the bunk bed mattresses did not meet your expectations, and please rest assured that we have shared your feedback with our team to work on improvements. We look forward to welcoming you back again soon. Kind regards
Hello,Thank you very much for taking the time to share your review. We are delighted that you enjoyed our location and the company of our local wildlife during your stay. We regret that the bunk bed mattresses did not meet your expectations… Show more
Reviewed: 4 February 2025 · Stayed in January 2025
Verified reviewClose to downtown. Quiet neighbourhood. Chilled atmosphere and well equipped kitchen
My friend and I got bedbugs. They should change the mattresses. Pillows are super flat and uncomfortable
Hello Julián, Thank you very much for sharing your feedback. We are sorry to hear that you experienced issues with the comfort of the beds and pillows. Based on our experience, it is unlikely for bedbugs to be present in Costa Rica's climate, and if they were, they would likely have been detected in other beds. Nevertheless, we greatly value your opinion and will take it into account as we work on improving this aspect. For your next visit, please note that it would have been very helpful if you had informed us at reception or approached our staff so that we could address the issue immediately. Thank you for your time, and we hope to welcome you back for a more satisfactory experience. Best regards,
Hello Julián, Thank you very much for sharing your feedback. We are sorry to hear that you experienced issues with the comfort of the beds and pillows. Based on our experience, it is unlikely for bedbugs to be present in Costa Rica's c… Show more
Reviewed: 1 February 2025 · Stayed in January 2025
Verified reviewVery nice hostel, 3 min from the beach and close to lots of shops, bars, restaurants. Perfect location for Tamarindo! Lots of good vibes, the people working there are also really nice. I would recommend it!
Hi Danai-Dimitra, Thank you so much for your kind words! We’re thrilled to hear that you enjoyed our great location, being just 3 minutes from the beach and close to many shops, bars, and restaurants. It’s a pleasure to know you felt so welcome and that you enjoyed the vibrant atmosphere at our hostel. We look forward to welcoming you back very soon! Best regards,
Hi Danai-Dimitra, Thank you so much for your kind words! We’re thrilled to hear that you enjoyed our great location, being just 3 minutes from the beach and close to many shops, bars, and restaurants. It’s a pleasure to know you felt so we… Show more
Reviewed: 31 January 2025 · Stayed in January 2025
Verified reviewgreat
ok
Reviewed: 25 January 2025 · Stayed in January 2025
Verified reviewGreat hostel! Close to beach. Probably the best hostel kitchen I've ever seen in my travels. Very well stocked. Super friendly staff. Fantastic hostel layout promotes meeting new people. Has AC. Aqesome showers. Honestly, a great hostel! Loved it!!
Beds were not the comfiest but not the worst
Hellooo! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave us your review. We’re thrilled to have exceeded your expectations and to know that you enjoyed your stay with us. The kitchen was part of a recent maintenance project, so double thanks for mentioning it—we’re just as happy to have it! 😃 We hope to see you back here very soon! Best regards,
Hellooo! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave us your review. We’re thrilled to have exceeded your expectations and to know that you enjoyed your stay with us. The kitchen was part of a recent maintenance project, so double than… Show more
Reviewed: 25 January 2025 · Stayed in January 2025
Verified review